MEDICAL AREA   

Medicina dello Sport 2020 September;73(3):430-42

DOI: 10.23736/S0025-7826.20.03658-3

Copyright © 2020 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA

language: English, Italian

Accuracy of a simple school-based submaximal effort test to predict cardiorespiratory fitness in primary school children

Jose C. DIZ ^{1, 2}, Miguel A. SANCHEZ-LASTRA ^{2, 3} ✉, Ivan MARTINEZ-LEMOS ^{1, 2}, Carlos AYAN ^{1, 2}

¹ Well-Move Research Group, Department of Functional Biology and Health Sciences, Faculty of Education and Sport Sciences, University of Vigo, Vigo, Spain; ² Galician Sur Health Institute (IIS Galicia Sur), Sergas-UVIGO, Spain; ³ Healthy Research Group, Department of Special Didactics, Faculty of Education and Sport Sciences, University of Vigo, Vigo, Spain

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to identify the predictive value of a school-based submaximal field-based test for estimating cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) level through Heart rate recovery (HRR) analysis in primary children. A secondary goal was to determine whether the results of this test are influenced by the children’s body mass index.
METHODS: A total of 165 children performed a submaximal test during physical education lessons. Heart rate was registered five minutes before the test begun (HR basal), just after the test was finished (HR maximum) and at one-minute intervals for five minutes. Fitness levels were identified by means of the “20-m shuttle run test.”
RESULTS: The adjusted HRR curves indicated a poorer HRR in children with worse CRF, who also showed lower HRR60 and HRR300 percentage values. Noteworthy, there was a major difference in HRRt1/2, demonstrating a slower recovery in children with worse CRF, with an absolute difference of 34 seconds (P<0.001). HRRt1/2 was the variable that showed a higher predictive value. Globally, there were differences in HRR according to BMI, with a slower recovery in children with overweight.
CONCLUSIONS: A school-based submaximal field-based test was shown to be a feasible method for predicting CRF through HRR analysis in primary school children.

KEY WORDS: Cardiovascular system; Physical education and training; Schools; Public health; Cardiorespiratory fitness